[ [ gavel ] >> good afternoon everyone. it's a beautiful monday afternoon. today is monday, october 1st, 2012. this is the land use and economic development committee of the san francisco board of supervisors. my name is eric mar, i'm the cheraw and to my right is supervisor cohen and to my left is supervisor wiener and miss mil could you please i have us our announcements. >> please make sure is to silence cell phone and electronic devices.

documents should be submitted to the clerk? >> i wanted to thank jennifer and greg from sfgov for televising us today. we have four items on our agenda. miss miller could you please call item no. 1. >> item no. 1 is an ordinance amending the planning code permitting five' ground floor height increases for active ground floor uses in the costa street. >> mr. wiener. >> thank you, mr. chairman. this legislation amends the castro neighborhood commercial district and 24th street noe valley ncd. the provisions of the planning code to allow for a 5' height bonus for active ground floor ground uses. we have seen similar legislation recently before this committee, most recently as part of supervisor chu's legislation creating neighborhood commercial district to parts of the sunset. supervisor mar also recently

introduced similar legislationion for geary boulevard. the five' currently applies to many of our commercial corridors. this legislation advances good urban design principles promoting tall area ground floor and will help further activate these two ncds with good ground floor uses. the legislation will not allow for an extra story of development. we met with a number of the neighborhood organizations in the noe valley and castro and there is a wide support for this legislation. thank you colleagues. >> thank you. and do we have a presentation from planning? supervisor? so we have kimia from the planning department. >> good afternoon, chair mar

and supervisors. yes, so the planning commission heard this item september 27 emand approved it. it's a 5' height for active and activity uses on the ground floor, provided can only be applied to the ground floor. and also, it's not sufficient to floor. as the supervisor mention there had is a good design policy and there have been several press departments. thank you. >> thank you. and thank you supervisor wiener for introducing this. i know along clement street and geary it's helping property owners think about how to make our storefronts and merchant areas more attractive and active as well. and i know that kind of whether it's glenn park to the richmond district, it's something that is really wise planning and i thank the planning department for their advice as well. let's open this up for public

comment. is there anyone from the public who would like to speak? three minutes maximum. seeing none, public comment is closed. supervisor? >> mr. chairman i would move to forward this item to the board with a positive recommendation. >> can we do this without objection, colleagues? thank you. [ gavel ] . yes? supervisor cohen is asking, so generally it's three minutes per person is the comment period. is that right, miss miller? >> yes and flair from 1-3 minutes. thank you. >> thank you. >> so let's go to item no. 2, miss miller. >> item no. 2 is an ordinance amending the administrative code extending restrictions of apartment converse to business sponsored short-term occupancies. >> thank you, i know we're expecting president chiu to be presenting on this item. so from his office is also amy .

chen. maybe we could -- -- since we do have ann marie rogers here for item no. 4, why don't we go to item no. 4? >> item no. 4 is an ordinance amending the administrative code to establish the right to revitalize housing ordinance. >> and this is an item that is sponsored by supervisor christina olague, who is also not here right now. so i'm wondering if we could just kind of hold off until president chiu is arriving. so our clerk is now getting in touch with president chiu's office. i don't think it's fair to

supervisor olague to call her item when she is not here as well. let me just continue. so he is on his way. okay. for i. no. 2, as resources we have here chris hall from the planning department and also representatives of the department of building inspections as well.

mr. chair would you like me to recall no. 2. >> yes, please miss miller. i. no. 2 is an ordinance madaming the administrative cold extending restrictions of

apartment conversion ordinances to business-[spo-eurpbs/]ed short-term occupancies allowing civil actions by certain non-profit entities. >> supervisor chiu. >> this is substitute legislation that i submitted last week that includes amends that our city attorney noted does not need to be adopted through separate legislation. the impetus of this came from a number of initial complaints that my office received over a year-ago. involving suggestions that there were corporations that were illegal leasing out spaces for the short-term use by individual as kin to the use of hotels by tourists. legislation that we have before us strengthens an existing law, to restrict this practice known as hotel evasion. in 1981 the passage of the apartment conversion ordinance, which is second, 41-a of the administrative code made it

illegal for residential propertis with four or more units to be occupied pore for less than 30 days. unfortunate le what we have found in recent years there has been a problem that has persisted due to enforcement challenges and a loophole in the law. in recent years we have seen many corporations sidestep this law by signing long-term loiss with property owner ises that their non-san franciscan employees can use the apartment as short-term corporate housing or tourism residential housing. so for example, as an example, in my district, the tenants at the large golden gateway [kph-efpl/] have experienced corporate employees and guests that come in and out of their buildings just like a hotel. based on rent board record there's are an estimate of dozens of these units that are leased by corporate entities. this not only creates quality of life issues for neighbors, but takes a much-needed limited housing supply away from our city's residents. the legislate we have in front of us clarifies that corporate

entitis can not skirt our laws, but signing long-term leases for planned occupancies of less than 30 days. that also strengthens the enforcement process by creating an administrative review hearing for the department of building inspection to reevaluate complaints and giving residents the ability to seek legal recourse through the assistance of non-profit organizations. i want to thank all of the stakeholders that my office has been working with starting with advocates for the tenants community, the san francisco tenants union, as well as representatives of tenants in the golden gateway, as well as in other neighborhoods. i know also there have been neighborhood associations that have v addressed my office and reached out to me. i want to thank the affordable housing alliance in addition, to the san francisco tenants union for their support. i should also mention that i have been convening a grouch stakeholders to address a separate set of challenges, associated with residents renting out their apartments while they are on vacation or on business.

in the area that is known as sharable housing better business bureau i want to mention that that is separate from the legislation that we have today. my overall goal is that with that other piece of legislation is that we will have hopefully a more comprehensive system to allow primary residents the flexibility to share space. but from my perspective, i think it's very -- it's very important that we first take the step to ensure that our residential housing is protected and that there is proper enforcement against illegal short-term rentals and that is why we have this legislation in front of us. so with that, i first would like to recognize rosemary bosk and bill strong from the department of building inspection who have worked with our office and supported this legislation. and i believe i do see ann marie rogers and christine howell from the planning department. first i want to turn it over to mr. boss to make opening [kpho-ept/]s. >> thank you, supervisor chiu and members of committee.

good afternoon. chief housing inspector. in addition, to the background that supervisor chiu just gave you, i want to add a few more item your conviction. board of supervisors of 15 years ago had an extensive hearing on the corporate rental situation and at that time chapter 41a as you currently see it before the inside of supervisor chiu's office left us with legislation that was underutilized and gave us no real tools to get to the issue of short-term and corporate rentals. and so i want to commend his office, amy chen, and also kate from the city attorney's office in coming up with legislation that actually would provide the department of building inspection with a stronger and more robust hearing procedures. it also requires anybody that is doing any of this type of rental to kept a appropriate records and also, allows for a

civil action if somebody does not comply with this ordinance. i cannot think in the last 20s of any other time that this ordinance is greatly needed with the foreclosures and with individuals that have been in the round housing now having to utilize the rental market, which is further exasperated the staff we have for functional and sanitary housing. so with that we look forward to working with the supervisor's office further in implementing this legislation thank you. >> thank you. i also want to take a moment to recognize the planning department to see if there are any opening ghents you would like to make and i would like to thank for the work you do with my office on this as well. >> chairman, supervisors, chris hall, code enforcement manager for the planning department. i'm here to answer any questions that you might have about the proliferation of the short-term rentals at this time. >> thank you very much.

i know there are individuals here for public comment. at the moment i have two speaker cards, but if folks could line up after these two individuals. [ reading speakers' names ] and then if other individuals would like to line up behind them, if you could line up on the right-hand side of the chamber, that would help everyone to be able to see the speakers at the mic. >> good afternoon, my name isern yeastine waters weis and i have been a reporter of the golden gate center for 25 years and i have noticed a lost change since the original owners were there. this landlord is notorious corrupt, called a slum lord at the golden gateway center, the second largest rent -controlled neighborhood in the city. the marriott consists of the overflow at the apartments. people coming in and out. we have been plagued with

transients, prostitution, bedbugs, roaches. i had to vacate my apartment for a week due to bedbugs. it was horrible. i have suffered stolen items and this street the boeing, not the outside people. it takes away apartments for renters, diminishing the amount of supply in the city. which drives the rentals up. this is simple. it drives it skyhigh, so that the middle-class can no longer afford to live here. it gets worse. no security. the doorman doesn't know people coming in or out, as he used to know people who lived there long-term. the quality of life has been diminished terribly. i can't say enough. i have had so much trouble with this landlord. rose marie knows how many times i called her office to correct

items that were horrible. so i urge you to pass this legislation unanimously when it comes to the board, because it's so important this. has been going on for years. i had mentioned it year before supervisor chiu came in and i'm glad it's finally being adjudicated thank you. >> thank you. let me call up mary long, lana and bill hanon as well. >> good afternoon, my name is spike con and i'm a landlord here and i own 12 units in the city. and i am absolutely in support of this ordinance. it is crazy. the last time i had an opening was a one-bedroom no, laundry, no parking, no backyard and there were nine people within 20 minutes writing me $4500

deposit checks and they all had higher credit card scores that i did. it's just crazy out there and the reason i believe is because of both air b emb taking the housing stock and after that, the academy of art and now i understand corporations also taking long-term housing stock and turning it into short-term. this city has been only for the wealthy and those who can cram themselves into the tenderloin, 4-5 people in a room. why is a non-profit going to enforce it? there y isn't there fines and fees that would support it, that the building department can go after these crooks who are avoiding the hotel tax and avoiding all of the planning laws and this ordinance? so i would urge that even be stronger and that there be enough fines and fees that you can have inspectors

and enforcement that would have a lot of teeth in it. currently i don't see that in this ordinance strong enough. so i am again a landlord and i completely support this. thank you. >> next speaker. >> good afternoon supervisors, terry frye. i sent this to you. i emailed this to you this morning, but i would like to read it outloud here and i forget to send it to you supervisor chiu, but i will when i get home. dear supervisors converting rentals into short-term rentals is unconscionable. i see no permits for the work in my piggly-wiggly. how can they completely remodel an apartment, including replacing kitchen and bathroom fixtures without permits? this

is absolutely depleting the rental stock in san francisco and with these the store term rentals there will be less people voting in my district, as they will not be inclined to register while they are waiting for permanent lodging. they are forgeting about local folks who already live here in favor of attracting those who are moving here and giving them short-term while they wait to rent or boy many of the condos that are not even affordable to many san franciscans. a young couple could always start in a cheap apartment in the tenderloin. not so any longer. show me a second or third generation san francisco who is interested in a finished $1900 studio apartment? native san franciscans are being priced out of the city in favor of transplants. yes, 32 years ago i was a transplant, but not this kind of transplant. i was a low to mid-income wage earner. thank you. t-good afternoon, supervisor.

my name is brook turner with the coalition for better housing. first, may i begin by thanking supervisor chiu and his staff amy chen for working so hard to try to figure out a way to do this that didn't hurt the rental property owners or the corporate suites companies that would actually be obeying the law already. our concern of course was there would be the industry of a drive-by or nuisance lawsuits for trying to get settlements and those kinds of things. we certainly do not condone, nor appreciate other property owners in corporate housing folks who do not obey this law. it's been a law for a long time and they should know better. i think this legislation and the debate that has gone up around it has gone a long way to addressing those issues and

i think this legislation will help and it won't provide a problem for rental property owners and others who go ahead and obey the law and keep records as they should, about how long their tenants have been there. thank you, supervisors. i'm happy to say that we can support this legislation as it's currently written. thank you. >> thank you the coalition for better housing, as well as the apartment association. i know you had some real issues and concerns when we first started the conversation, but to your point, what we have found in our examination of this issue is that are good actors in the industry, but there are certainly bad actors in industry that have led to, i think, a number of the concerns and facts that we have heard today. and i think the work that we did together around ensuring an administrative review process before the legal resource that could involve the assistance of non-profit organizations that

will go a long way to insure that dbi is working with tenants to go after folks not doing the right thing. so i appreciate the work you did with our office. >> thank you, it's been a pleasure. >> good afternoon, supervisors. i am bill hanon, president of the golden gateway tenants association. our members live at the gateway, known as the golden gateway center a residential complex of 1254 residential units near the embarcadero. i have live there had since 1989. for many years i have heard complaints from neighbors about hotelization. we believe more than 10% of the units at the gateway are currently rented to residents to companies including bay city suites and marriott exu stay owho could possibly make those units a[srao-ubl/] available

short-term use hotelization. some have teams of maids and large carts that fill up elevators to clean multiple apartments at same time. the overall effect is a revolving door at pher, like a hotel that undercuts any sense of community we may have. on public police officer grounds rentyas to tourists or transients [-efblt/]ively remove apartments from rent control, which should be broadly available to long-term residents. and this loophole in legal application allowing these short-term rentals decreases the supply of affordable housing in san francisco. we enthusiastically support supervisor david chiu's proposed legislation and thank him and his staff, including amy chen for their fine work. thank you for your attention.

>> thank you, mr. hanon, i want to state on the record the statistic is 15% of the golden gateway units that have been rented by corporate entities and thank you your leadership that initially brought this to my attention. as we have discovered this is an issue that has been plaguing [ta-ept/]s in apartment buildings in a number of areas around the city. thank you for your help. >> next speaker. >> good afternoon. we're from the same apartment building. thank you, supervisor chiu, we have been following -- mary long, lanai backet. we have been talking to amy chen about this legislation and we're happy with the legislation except we feel there is a little bit of a hole that doesn't solve the problem that we have experienced, which is that we live in an apartment building that was mixed income, mixed ages, mixed household type and everything. an old building on nob hill.

and they managed to empty half of the apartments to start a new business, which was this suites business, the first brand as city suites and late on when the building went into receivership, the receiver started another business, an urban suites collection, which mr. hammond from the golden gateway was talking about the hotelization and that is what has gone on with half the units in the building. we have half regular tenants and half corporate suites. those apartments -- as along as this business model is profitable for these owners, those apartments will never be available to regular middle-class renters to live in the neighborhood that we really enjoy living in. so that is our problem. >> lana backet. i think there is a way of correcting this and we would

like to talk with your office about an amendment that would define "corporate suites." make it illegal for them to be in buildings occupied by permanent residents for more than 30 days, less than 90 days. or that they don't offer a year lease. so we would love to continue this dialogue with your office. and that is what we have to say. thank you. >> thank you very much and i hope that the department of building inspection knows exactly what site you are referring to in case there is any work that can be done now. thank you very much. next speaker. >> good afternoon. my name is joe and i'm a resident of the golden gateway. i have live there had for 18 years. when i first started my tenancy

in july of 1995, i quickly made contact with existing tenants and formed friendships with them. some of them have lasted to this day, even though some of those tenants are have moved out and then i noticed that certain parents on my floor, the 14th floor, where there are 20 apartments, didn't house them and learned that they were rented to corporation for their overflow tenants. it changes the atmosphere considerably, if you rent an apartment or even if you buy a home, you want tenants that you can associate with, and this

hotelization makes you feel like you are in a hotel, not in a home. a second point i would briefly make is that the hotelization program seems to subvert capitalism. if an owner of an apartment house who has several vacancies, the inclination is that he will raise rents, but with hotelization, chances are that the apartment house will always be filled and there will be no motivation by the owner to lower rents and to the detriment of potential low-income tenants. thank you very much. >> thank you very much. next speaker. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my